Willing
Chapter 44
Meetings
Minerva had just corrected the last of the seventh-year's homework when a knock sounded at her classroom door. She'd been waiting an hour for Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy to appear. No doubt they had been in class; Granger would have appeared straight away if it wasn't the case. Placing the corrected work into her desk, she decided that she should really move everything to the Headmaster's office. Or rather, her Headmistress' office; the change in status was taking some getting used to, that was for sure. Not only that, she was going to have to employ a new Transfiguration teacher to take over from her, and her duties as Head of Gryffindor house. Either Filius or Spout would be taking over as Deputy Head, if they were amendable to the idea, of course.
"Come in," Minerva called grimly, dropping her quill into the pot with the rest. She sat up straighter waiting for them to come in.
"You asked to see me, Professor McGonagall?" Hermione queried as she walked in, Draco Malfoy scowling behind her as he too entered the room.
"I did, come in and sit down," Minerva said, observing the two seventh-years, wondering if they were capable of taking on the tasks ahead of them.
"Is something wrong?" Draco asked, frowning. "Is everything okay with Professor Snape?" he added, worried about his own Head of house and godfather. It wasn't every day he was mysteriously called to Professor McGonagall's office; she was, after all, in charge of the Gryffindors, not the Slytherins.
"No, Mr. Malfoy. Everything is fine, or as well as they could be at the moment," Minerva told the blond boy. "I have something to ask of both of you; it's not something that should be agreed to lightly. Do not hesitate to say no, should you feel the task is too monumental for you. Especially with your N.E.W.T's this year; there are other students I can ask."
"What task?" Hermione asked, sitting up straighter, her brown eyes eager for something to do. Ever since that Order meeting she'd felt so sick. The newspaper hadn't told them half of what had happened to Harry Potter. She could barely believe that his uncle had stabbed him; family loved one another. She didn't have Aunts or Uncles, but she imagined they would have been like her parents. Ginny had gone straight to her bed, completely traumatised; she'd refused to go to the Hospital Wing when she suggested it.
"I need someone to temporarily take over Potions and Transfiguration classes, just the first and perhaps second-years. It will be credited, and you can use this as work experience; I shall be all too happy to be a reference for whichever career path you take," Minerva said, laying it out for them.
"Potions?" Draco asked; why did his godfather need someone to take over some of his classes? He so badly wanted to ask, but he was too much a pureblood, that to say, too well-brought up, to do so.
"Why do you need someone to take over the classes?" Hermione asked blankly. Did this have something to do with the Order? Dumbledore's trial? But if that was the case, why only two classes?
Draco threw a look of incredulity at Granger for her blatant lack of manners; she shouldn't be asking questions like that. Her teachers were teachers, not her equals, and didn't have to answer questions like that. She was speaking to McGonagall as if they were on an equal footing; it was like speaking to Dumbledore as if you were best friends.
Minerva pursed her lips, evidently not impressed.
"When are the first- through third-year Potions classes?" Draco asked, removing his timetable from his Gladrags designer school bag.
"Ah," Minerva said, shuffling about in her pile, searching for a copy of the Potions Master's class schedule. "The first-years are the first two periods on Mondays."
"I can do that," Draco said; his schedule was free then. "Second-years?"
"Third and fourth period on Wednesday," Minerva told him.
"I have a class on the fourth period, but it's Herbology; I can skip a few of them; it won't affect my grades," Draco said thoughtfully, "If Professor Spout would be willing to give me an outline of the class?"
"I will inform her," Minerva said, relieved that Draco was willing to help when he could.
"Third-year?" Draco asked then.
"Are you sure, Mr. Malfoy?" Minerva asked before looking at the schedule.
"Yes, ma'am," Draco replied, scribbling away on his timetable.
"The third-years are the fifth and sixth period on Tuesday," Minerva said, looking a bit doubtful now.
"I assume the seventh-year Potions is cancelled for the time being?" Draco asked, looking up from his timetable.
"Indeed," Minerva confirmed, surprised at how…maturely Draco Malfoy was acting. He genuinely looked as though he was looking forward to the experience. He had grown up, and without her even realising it, she felt proud. It was always nice to see the students growing into mature adults. The same couldn't be said for Ronald Weasley yet, who only had three classes this year. None of which would get him a decent job; the rest of the Weasleys had taken at least six N.E.W.T's classes, and passed them, even the twins. She was surprised Molly hadn't blown a fuse over it, if she was being perfectly honest.
Draco nodded, pressing his wand to the timetable, and 'study time' appeared over the potions class time slots. It was highlighted in yellow so Draco knew it wasn't permanent. He loved Potions, so it was no hardship for him to take over the lower years' classes. He had been learning about Potions from his godfather since he was a toddler. Not that the dark wizard had come around every day; he'd mostly seen Severus only a few days a year, usually his birthday, Christmas, and oddly enough, Halloween. That last didn't happen now with him being at Hogwarts; he did still receive a present and card for his birthday, though.
"Does Professor Snape have a class schedule for me?" Draco asked, putting his timetable away with satisfaction.
"I am sure he will have one," Minerva assured him.
"Was that everything, Professor? I'd like to get some studying done since class time has been reduced?" Draco asked. He would just take some books from the library and read in his rooms. Which, by the way, were to die for, even though they were nothing extravagant like his rooms at Malfoy Manor; the memories of his home had been sullied by the Dark Lord's presence.
"It is; thank you, Mr. Malfoy," Minerva said, almost smiling at the teenager.
"No problem," Draco said professionally before walking out of the room and heading up towards the library.
"Has it got anything to do with the Order?" Hermione asked once the door was closed and she was alone with the headmistress.
"Miss Granger, contrary to popular belief, you don't need to know everything. I did not agree with students at Hogwarts being allowed in the Order to begin with…" Minerva began.
"You aren't kicking me out?" Hermione interrupted, gaping in shock.
"There may not be an Order for much longer; it just depends on how things go. Unfortunately, as you are officially of age, I cannot really tell you what to do. Truth be told, you are extremely intelligent, and could be one of the best Order members we have... if you didn't insist on knowing everything. Now, I have much to do and not a lot of time to accomplish it; can you take over the Transfiguration classes or shall I ask someone else to do it?" Minerva asked with utter honesty. The girl reminded her too much of Dumbledore; her need to know everything was truly disturbing.
"I can do it," Hermione said; the chance to teach was too big an opportunity to pass up. Plus she'd already read every single one of her seventh-year school books three times. Although whether the students would agree with her... was another thing entirely.
"Thank you," Minerva said, her exasperation showing. Honestly, she should have thought about using another student.
"When are the first-years due?" Hermione asked, following Draco's example and writing it down. Taking out her diary, she held the Muggle pen that came with it poised at the ready.
"Tomorrow, second and third period," Minerva said, not having to look at her schedule.
"Okay, second-years?" Hermione asked, scribbling away on her diary and blanking out her 'study' sessions.
"First thing tomorrow morning― first period, and Thursday, fourth period," Minerva added. "Third-years, if you can do it, is Wednesday, third and fourth period." Taking a piece of parchment from the tray, she began to write down what she had planned for her lessons with the third-years, since she'd only planned on the student-teacher having the first- and second-year classes.
"It's fine," Hermione said, feeling relieved; none of her classes would be interrupted.
"Thank you, Miss Granger," Minerva said.
"It's no problem, professor McGonagall," Hermione immediately said; anything that helped her find work after she left school was fine by her.
"Here are my class schedules," Minerva said, handing over three pages of parchment.
"Thank you, professor," Hermione responded smugly. Standing up, she placed them in her folder, intending to go up to her Head Girl room and practising for her first class. Excitement thrummed through her; finally she was going to get to show people what she was made of. The teacher thought enough of her to ask! Slinging her satchel over her shoulder she left the room. She only had an hour to practise after all, since there was an Order meeting after dinner.
Minerva sighed in relief when they finally left, that was one thing off her plate. Now she just had to Floo Cornelius Fudge, then she could get some dinner before the Order meeting. Speaking of which, she'd best get that set up now before she forgot again. Opening her drawer she hunted for the small trinket, a gold coin with a phoenix on it, with some numbers and letters. Once she found it she removed it, and tapping it with her wand, she set the new meeting time; she knew it had been cast successfully when the coin grew warm in her palm. Placing it in her pocket, she stood up, calling for one of the house-elves.
"Can I help you, Headmistress McGonagall?" Drip asked, gazing at the woman who was now effectively in charge of all of them.
"I need all my possessions packed and boxed up before being moved to the Headmistress' office, please. Do so when you can without disrupting dinner," Minerva said to the house-elf.
"We can do it now, Headmistress McGonagall!" Drip chirped immediately; there were over a hundred house-elves down there in the kitchens, and only around thirty of them were cooking. Everyone else was cleaning, and putting the used utensils and items back in their appropriate spots.
"Thank you," Minerva said kindly to the elf before moving off towards her quarters to use the Floo.
"Cornelius Fudge, Minister of Magic!" Minerva shouted as her face disappeared into the Floo.
"Can I help you?" a sugary sweet voice asked, dripping with feigned interest.
"I would like to speak to Cornelius Fudge," Minerva said, her tone clipped.
"He isn't available right now, can I pass on a message?" Umbridge asked.
"Perhaps you didn't hear me; I need to speak to Cornelius Fudge," Minerva said in irritation.
"The Minister of Magic is a very busy person!" Umbridge said, losing her own cool.
"Then go and retrieve him," Minerva said as if she was talking to a five year old.
"You cannot speak to me like that!" Umbridge shrieked, angered by this woman's audacity.
"What is going on?" Cornelius Fudge demanded, entering the room and glaring at his secretary. Why was she in his office? How many times did he have to tell her to stay out of it? She had her desk outside his room, and that was where she should remain.
"This woman demanded your presence, despite the fact I told her you were an extremely busy man, running the Ministry as you do," Umbridge said, her sugary tone back as she gazed at Fudge in supposed awe.
"Why are you even in my office to begin with?" Cornelius demanded, less than impressed. Why was it so hard to get someone to bloody listen to him? Oh yes, they though he was an idiot. He sighed inwardly; she was truly grating on his nerves.
"I was returning my application to be your senior undersecretary," Umbridge told him sweetly, pointing her pink fingernailed hand at the lone application adorning his desk. What she failed to mention was the fact that she'd 'misplaced' all the applications they'd been sent by the other applicants, especially Madam Bones; Delores knew she didn't stand a chance against her. She really wanted the position; to become senior undersecretary meant she would only have to answer to Cornelius Fudge. The man was an idiot, and with the right persuasion, she could have him doing whatever she wanted. She had so many legislations she wanted to have passed, mostly related to the filthy half-blood creatures she hated so much. She was also sick of acting as a scribe during the trials; she had so much she wanted to say.
"Leave," Cornelius ordered, closing his eyes. He half admired her audacity; no doubt she'd removed all the other applications while she was at it. Unfortunately, he just wasn't in the mood to play games, at least not these days anyway. Without Dumbledore and Lucius behind him, he had to make his own name, his own way, which meant he would have to get the public onside by himself.
"Would you like a coffee, sir? You seem worried?" Umbridge asked in concern.
"I do believe the Minister asked you to leave," Minerva said from the fire. She was getting irritated, and her legs weren't up for long communications via the Floo network now.
"I wasn't speaking to you," Umbridge said in that sickly baby voice.
"I do not want coffee," Cornelius said, standing away from the door and silently gesturing for her to leave.
"Yes sir," Umbridge said, reluctantly leaving to take her seat outside his office. A small plaque on her desktop read 'Delores Umbridge Secretary for the Minister of Magic'; she'd had it created herself. She tried to listen in, but heard nothing; obviously a silencing spell had been cast. She growled in irritation; the quicker she got that job the better. There was a rumour that Harry Potter had been found; the fact that Hogwarts was in touch with Fudge could only point to the brat.
"Can I help you, Minerva?" Cornelius asked, sitting down resignedly.
"Really Cornelius? Delores Umbridge as your undersecretary?" Minerva asked, her disapproval clear. She could remember her, a Slytherin, mousy girl with the most horrific voice. She had a pathological hatred for anything not pure, and was making life unbearable for them. "That certainly won't win you votes; she's a real piece of work."
"She isn't yet," Cornelius said tiredly, rubbing his eyes. "How can I help you?"
"Severus has, theoretically and most likely, found an antidote to the potion; he is brewing it and is enquiring if you need it?" Minerva told him, wasting no time on pleasantries.
"Ah, already?" Cornelius asked, blinking in surprise. It seemed he had made the right decision to send Percy Weasley over to Severus. The Weasley boy was, as of right now, his junior secretary; both Umbridge and Weasley were fighting over the smallest tasks, trying to win his favour. Oddly enough, he hadn't seen him yet since his return from Hogwarts, and wasn't at his desk.
"He isn't the youngest Potions Master for nothing," Minerva said, her lips twitching in pride.
"No, I don't suppose he is. I'm having Weasley check the Wizengamot for any tampering when he gets back. If he doesn't in the next half hour, it will have to wait until the next trial is over with." Cornelius said, staring at the time on the wall; the days seem to drag lately.
"Just owl Severus if you need him," Minerva said. "You best not send Percy back; I doubt very much he would want that task."
Cornelius stared at her trying to suppress his own amusement; That was exactly why he had sent him in the first place. Plus he was just morbidly curious to know if Severus Snape had lost his touch. It looked as if he hadn't, despite the fact he had a lover in his life.
"You did it on purpose," Minerva said, drawing to the correct conclusion.
"Perhaps," Cornelius replied cagily, the politician in him not wanting to admit to anything that might be used against him.
"Well, if you will excuse me, I'm currently making the move from here to the Headmistress' office," Minerva said.
"Of course; I'll leave you to it. I'll see you tomorrow for the trial," Cornelius told her.
"You will," Minerva agreed before disappearing from the Floo.
Ginny jumped when she felt the coin warm up against her hip. Sitting up, she wiped the tears from her eyes as she fished the coin out of her pocket. Wiping her nose she looked at it and found another Order meeting later today. She felt so sickened by everything she'd learned. Her poor Harry, he'd been through so much. She had known he'd been hurt by his family; that was why he'd run away. She hadn't been allowed to see the paper or to know the full story, and her mum had stopped anyone from talking about it when she was near. Stabbed... she couldn't help but shudder at that thought. She would make sure he knew she was there for him, help him get over his childhood. If anyone understood it was her, after what had happened with the diary…she'd start by being a friend to him, before making a move. Hopefully he would remain at Hogwarts, so she could get to know him properly; they could even get engaged before she left Hogwarts. Mrs. Ginevra Potter... her mum had said it might happen, but until now it had been nothing but a distant dream. Yet it could happen now. Harry had come back to the magical world, although not the way she'd hoped. He wasn't exactly open or friendly; the fight had been brutal against Doge. He had every right to be angry through, she knew that.
Sighing sadly, she grabbed her tissues and wiped her face hastily before sneaking into her roommate's trunk and grabbing her make-up bag. Normally she used Hermione's since she had some make-up but rarely used it. In fact she'd only used it once that she could remember, during the ball for the Tri-Wizard tournament― the Yule ball. Grabbing her best clothes she made a run for the bathroom and took a hasty shower. Drying herself off, she put the clothes on, not impressed with how shabby she looked. Such a thing hadn't bothered her since first-year, when she'd had to wear the second-hand robes her mother had bought from the shop. Nobody was nasty about it... well, apart from Draco Malfoy occasionally; she couldn't wait to have money to spend on clothes! It was definitely the first thing she'd do when she had galleons to spend.
Going over to the sink that had mirrors on the wall, she began to rummage around in her roommate's make-up bag. She tried to pick out a few things to use that would go well with her features. Most of the lipsticks were red, though, not something she wanted to use, so she decided to nix that idea. She carefully did her face with her chosen items, taking her time since she was still unused to putting anything on. Nodding in satisfaction at last, she dried her hair magically and brushed it, glad for once that her hair was long, straight and thick. The girls were all envious of her long hair; that was another way she and Harry were similar: his hair was long. It was longer than Bill's was; no doubt her mum was irritated with that. She didn't think long hair on a man was appropriate.
There now, she was pretty enough to attract attention. She hoped her parents didn't make too much of a fuss when they saw her; she didn't want to be embarrassed in front of Harry. She almost wanted to take her roommate's cloak as well, since hers was going grey, as opposed to the black it was meant to be. Her stomach grumbled, causing her to remember dinner; she still had time before the meeting, so that was exactly what she was going to do. Running back into her dorm she replaced the items she'd taken, dropped her towel on the bed, grabbed her raggedy cloak and quickly made her way to the Great Hall.
"How would you like to eat in the Great Hall?" Severus enquired when he noticed Harry returning to the land of the living. He'd only slept for three hours; hopefully it wouldn't prevent him from sleeping tonight. If it did, well…there was certainly something they could do to…help with that, Severus thought, his black eyes gleaming with wickedness. He didn't care that Harry made him feel like a teenager again. It had bothered him in the beginning, but not anymore.
"Really?" Harry asked eagerly, his head peeking out from under the covers as he looked over at Severus, who was currently buttoning up another dress. Harry hated them with a vengeance, not because he thought they looked silly... okay, they did to him, but because of all the bloody buttons on them. It took forever for him to get his Dom out of them; it sort of spoiled the mood for a few minutes. He was so used to seeing Severus in normal clothes; they were all he'd worn back in London. He drooled at the sight of Severus' strong, pale, muscular chest; he noticed that he was getting hairy again― his Dom didn't like having a hairy chest. Harry pouted slightly when the buttons closed over it, not allowing him to see anymore. "Have you been brewing?" he added, sniffing the room. It certainly smelt like it; what had he missed?
"Yes, and yes," Severus said wryly, finishing up the buttons, then putting his boots on.
"I'll get it," Severus said when another knock sounded on his door. Slipping his last boot on, he made his way to the door, wondering if it was the Ministry again. "Yes?" Severus asked coolly, not recognizing the person standing before him. Judging by the fact she didn't have uniform on, it wasn't a student.
"Hello, sir. I'm Madam Malkin's assistant; I'm here to deliver your things. We wish to apologise for the delay; several materials we needed were late in coming," she said, handing over the extremely large package, which had thankfully been made manageable with a feather light charm. She had bought two calming draughts at the apothecary before Apparating here.
"Thank you," Severus said, taking the package and giving her a galleon for delivering it. Then he closed the door without saying anything else.
"Your clothes are here," Severus said, laying the brown-wrapped package on the bed.
"Brilliant!" Harry exclaimed as he sat up, unable to keep himself from ripping into the package eagerly. He always got excited over new things, although usually he'd stolen them; there was something even more exhilarating about knowing they'd been paid for, weirdly but true. He found more brown paper packages when he ripped the big one open, making it even more fun. He grabbed one, and ripped it open to find his dragonhide boots. They were awesome, much better than they looked in the catalogue. He was definitely wearing them today. They felt scaly, and sturdy; they would last him a long time. He ripped into the other packages, until the bed was littered with the wrappings, and his new clothes were all folded and piled up around him.
"Put it all away," Severus said as he automatically began banishing the brown paper.
"Yes, sir," Harry answered automatically. Getting up, he left the clothes he wanted to wear out on the bed before starting to hang up the rest of his new clothes. There was already space available for all his things, in both the cupboard and three of the drawers. Severus didn't have many wizarding clothes, Harry noticed; he definitely had more Muggle clothes. He made sure to put them away all neat and tidy; he hated things being messy, and thankfully his Dom was pretty much the same. "What's it like eating in the Great Hall?" Harry asked as he closed the cupboard door. His stomach was already doing flips; he wasn't used to being around so many unfamiliar people.
"They will be staring the entire time," Severus warned truthfully, "It's not every day we have guests at Hogwarts. If you would prefer Minerva not to announce who you are, then that's perfectly fine."
"I'd prefer that," Harry admitted. At least until he got a good look at them and gauged them; none of them would understand him though. He probably wouldn't like many of them either, according to what Sev had said, they were mostly spoiled brats. Of course, Harry had been under the impression it was a normal school he worked at, teaching chemistry, for god's sake. He knew if they started on him he'd want to kill them, or rather just punch their lights out, but that wasn't acceptable behaviour. His Dom had made that abundantly clear, time and time again. No doubt he would be on the receiving end of another lecture before they went.
"Then it will be done," Severus said simply.
And that was why Harry loved being a sub.
"Before we go there are a few rules," Severus began, staring at Harry pointedly.
"I know: no fist fighting, no swearing," Harry solemnly said. He would follow those rules; he didn't want to let his Dom down by acting out. It wasn't easy, though; when someone pissed him off, his first instinct was to fight or flee, and to flee wasn't an option... or at least it hadn't been on the street.
"And no using magic," Severus said.
"What?" Harry asked, staring in shock; he wasn't going to agree to that. Sure, he didn't have trouble controlling his magic, but it was even more awesome now. The fact he'd been able to throw Black across the room by just willing it was amazing.
"Let me rephrase that: do not use your magic to send anyone flying across the room," said Severus told his submissive wryly.
"That's just for the Great Hall, right?" Harry asked. It had better be, because it wasn't fair. His green eyes flashed in confused anger. The urge to say more was nearly overwhelming him, but he managed to keep quiet.
"Of course; I would never deny you the use of your magic, Harry. You've just started to use it, and until you learn how to use it properly, you cannot control the power behind it. You must understand the consequences of using it like you did before. You could throw someone into a wall and break their spinal cord, or they could hit the wall with such force you could kill them. I am not doing this to be spiteful or to punish you for what you did to Black. I'm not even doing it to protect the students; I am doing it to protect you," Severus said as he cupped Harry's chin in his hand, speaking frankly to him and stroking his thumb across his face. He was still amazed that this slip of a boy wanted him, of all people.
Relief flowed through Harry. Closing his eyes, he leaned into the touch relishing it. His magic was causing sparks to jump between them. He allowed his Dom to maneuver him into his arms. Harry leaned his head against his Dom's chest; the smell of potions clung to the clean robes even after they'd been washed. He hadn't thought about his magic doing that much damage to someone, but it made sense to him. He really had to stop doubting his Dom; he didn't want to lose him because of his constant insecurities.
"Ready to go?" Severus asked after they'd been standing there for a few minutes. He knew Harry could remain standing there for hours, just basking in the contact. Even after their two years together, the boy was still extremely needy... well, not two years really, since they'd only spent the summers together. The rest of the year Harry had been alone; well, that wouldn't be the case this year. "I think perhaps during the Christmas holidays we should take ourselves off on a holiday of our own. What do you think about that?"
"Somewhere warm?" Harry asked, his heart pounding. He'd never been on a holiday before, and it sounded so good.
"Of course," Severus said wryly.
"I'd love that, sir," Harry told him.
"Good," Severus said, "Now let's go, otherwise we will be late, and as you are no doubt aware, I do not do late."
Minerva almost dropped her goblet when she saw Harry enter the Great Hall through the teacher's entrance behind Severus. She didn't know why she was surprised, but she was, very much so. Her eyes automatically went to where Hagrid was sitting. Perhaps it would be best for everyone to move down a seat, so Severus and Harry could sit on her other side.
"Hagrid? Would you sit next to Madam Pince and allow Severus' guest to sit next to him?" Minerva asked, saying it as quietly as possible, but unfortunately Harry heard. Dear Merlin, he had the hearing of a cat! She made a mental note to remember that.
"Aye, o'course! Nice ter meet ya," Hagrid said, his large body getting up and thumping towards the other side of McGonagal. The half giant had no idea who this was, or how Harry felt regarding him.
"Thank you, Minerva," Severus said as he sat down; Harry took his seat next to him. He could feel how nervous Harry was, but he had a blank mask displayed to the world.
"No problem," Minerva said, smiling at them in welcome. She was sitting in middle chair, officially taking up mantle of Headmistress of Hogwarts ― much to the confusion of the majority of Hogwarts, that is.
"Don't announce who he is," Severus whispered.
"I'm afraid that might not be possible, Severus," Minerva said, her eyes drawn to the Gryffindor table. Nearly all the Gryffindors were staring at him, speaking in hushed tones to their partners before they too looked up, gazing in awe. Most of them were trying to see Harry's forehead for the legendary scar.
"Damn it," Severus quietly snarled. Damn Granger or Weasley to hell, he hadn't even thought of them ― bloody stupid Gryffindors. He turned to glare at them only to find they were already looking away; arching an eyebrow, he turned to face Harry only to see him glaring ferociously on his own. Yes, when it came to this, Harry didn't need his help; he was more than capable of dealing with this on his own. Hopefully without using defensive magic.
"Where's the food?" Harry asked, once he had successfully cowed the students. "Do the House-elves come and give it to everyone?" If that was true, there must be a huge number of House-elves in Hogwarts; there were hundreds of students.
"No, Harry, they do not. It arrives magically in bowls and on platters, allowing everyone to help themselves. Down in the kitchen there are replicas of each table; once the food has all been placed on those, it is transported magically to these here," Minerva explained.
"Oh," Harry said, nodding his head, of course it was served magically; this was a magical school, after all.
Minerva clinked her glass before rising to her feet. "Good evening, students. As you know, classes have been a little hectic recently. Starting tomorrow, the class schedules will go back to normal. You may have noticed Professor Dumbledore isn't in attendance. It's with regret I announce that Professor Dumbledore is no longer the Headmaster of Hogwarts, and that I have taken over his duties as Headmistress. If anyone has any questions, my door is always open. Now let's eat our dinner, shall we?" she said before sitting down, and as she did the food appeared on every available surface. She paid no attention to the gossipping the students were doing now that they knew at least this much.
Harry gaped at the laden tables. "You eat all this?" Harry asked, staring around at all the food. Sure, he'd never really starved, stealing food as he had, but he hadn't truly ever been full.
"No, a great deal of it goes back to the Kitchens, but I'm sure the House-elves put it to good use," Severus said quietly. He understood why Harry was reacting this way; only someone who had gone hungry more often than not would react like that.
"Eat," Severus firmly directed, as he put food on his own plate. He wanted Harry to put weight on, and that required proper meals. Remembering the nutrition potion, he dug into his cloak pocket and removed one. He handed it over without saying anything. In turn Harry drank it down, grimacing in distaste; he really hated the taste of them. He looked around the table but found no orange juice, just the horrible pumpkin juice that he didn't like.
"Grace," Severus said quietly.
"Yes, sir?" the house-elf asked, appearing behind the teachers' table and speaking in the merest whisper.
"Bring up a pitcher of orange juice," Severus directed, very much aware of Harry's personal distaste for pumpkin juice.
"What's wrong with the pumpkin juice?" Minerva enquired as the rest of the teachers listened in curiously.
"I don't like it, it's disgusting," Harry admitted.
Minerva blinked, not sure what to say. That was a first; she'd never met a student who didn't like it in her entire career. "I see," she said before going back to her meal.
"Why do they keep looking at my head?! Do I have something on it?" Harry asked in exasperation, rubbing at his face as if suspecting he had a smudge on it.
"Haven't you told him, Severus?" Minerva cautiously asked.
"Of course I have," Severus said, rolling his eyes before turning to his submissive. "They are merely looking for your scar, Harry. There isn't a child who grew up in the magical world unaware of it."
Grace reappeared, handing Severus the pitcher before disappearing again. Severus then placed the pitcher on the table, after automatically filling Harry's goblet.
"That does raise an interesting point. I do not think I've seen it yet," Minerva said casually.
"It faded," Harry said, going back to his meal. It wasn't as good as his own food, but it was nice enough. He personally preferred more seasoning in his food, and nothing was piping hot. He gratefully drank the entire goblet of orange juice.
"Faded? When you were a child?" Minerva asked, after swallowing some of her corn.
"No, when I gave him something to help remove his scars," Severus said, whispering quietly enough that only Minerva would hear.
"Ah, I understand." said Minerva nodding. "I did not think it would disappear, with it being due to Dark magic."
"Dark Magic? As opposed to what?" Harry asked. That was a new one; he'd never heard magic referred to as 'Dark' yet.
"Light magic," Minerva explained, as if it were self-evident.
"What's the difference?" Harry asked curiously.
"There is no difference," said Severus at the same time Minerva replied, "Dark magic is widely considered dangerous."
"Which is it?" Harry asked. He supposed it didn't really matter what they said, he would probably go with his Dom's views. If anyone here knew his Dom as he did, they'd know his arguments were always sound and logical, meaning you'd think it was your own idea at the end of it.
"Everyone has their own opinion, I shall demonstrate further later," Severus reluctantly said; he didn't want to get into an argument about light versus dark magic right now.
"Okay," Harry said agreeably. He shoved the food around on his plate; the peas had been frozen, he could tell. So had the sweet corn, come to that, and the meat was cold already. Normally he wasn't a fussy eater, eating everything put before him... well, if you didn't count the food his captors had brought to him. His stomach felt fuller than normal, maybe that was due to the potion, since he didn't normally take it then immediately begin eating. The nutrition potion was usually taken an hour before, when he began making their dinner.
"Are you not enjoying the food, Harry?" Minerva asked.
"I'm full," Harry said.
"He's not used to eating three meals a day yet," Severus said sitting back, having finished his own meal.
Dessert was served afterwards, causing Harry's eyes to widen; there was so much to choose from. He didn't normally eat dessert; on the street he'd only taken food that would fill him up. Then when he was with his Dom, they didn't normally eat after their dinner. If he got hungry later at night, he'd just have a few biscuits with a coffee.
"Try a few things," Severus said, encouraging Harry to try and eat more.
"I'd rather go back to our quarters," Harry said. He was sick and tired of everyone staring at him. His Dom had warned him about it, but he was in no way prepared for it. He was used to being ignored... well, other than when he was in the club or with his Doms, but that had been one person... not the sea of faces staring at him curiously despite the fact he was telling them to fuck off with his eyes. Even the teachers were giving him sideway glances every now and again. Even more so now, since his last statement.
"Let's go," Severus said, immediately standing up; he was well aware of how uncomfortable Harry was, he could feel it. His Submissive came first, before his reputation, the teachers, the Order... absolutely everything. "I shall see you in twenty minutes," he added to Minerva.
"Of course," Minerva said, smiling sadly in understanding. It was obviously a little much for Harry. He would get used to it, hopefully; she didn't want to see him leaving.
"That was Harry Potter?" Pomona Sprout asked, sounding a little shocked.
"Yes," Minerva said, her tone stern. She wasn't about to start gossiping like a student, nor would she encourage the teachers to do so either. She did notice that Pomona had waited until Severus and Harry were both gone before saying anything ... much to her amusement.
"Dear Merlin!" Sprout said, still staring at the entrance hall where they had left. The other teachers could only agree, their minds dwelling on the 'Our' Harry had said, referring the living situation.
Thanks to Jordre and Jake for editing this chapter!
